House Republicans are interviewing James Comey behind closed doors Friday, hauling the former FBI director to Capitol Hill one final time before they cede power to Democrats in January.

Comey is appearing for the interview after unsuccessfully fighting a subpoena in court. It is the first time he has answered lawmakers' questions since an explosive June 2016 hearing in which he asserted that President Donald Trump fired him to interfere with his investigation of Russia's ties to the Trump campaign.

The interview comes as GOP lawmakers are wrapping up a yearlong investigation into decisions made at the Justice Department during the 2016 presidential election. Republicans argue that department officials were biased against Trump as they started the investigation into his campaign's ties with Russia and cleared Democrat Hillary Clinton in a separate investigation into her email use.

Comey was in charge of both of those investigations.

Democrats, who will also attend the interview, have said the GOP investigation is merely a way to distract from and undermine special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe. Mueller took over the department's investigation when he was appointed in May 2017.

"This is a waste of time to start with," Nadler said. "The entire purpose of this investigation is to cast aspersions on the real investigation ... there is no evidence whatsoever of bias at the FBI or any of this other nonsense."

Nadler said he's just learned of President Donald Trump's decision to nominate William Barr as Attorney General, but he said he was "hopeful" that Barr would protect the Mueller investigation. He also expressed concern that Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker has not been confirmed by the Senate.

Washington - 7 December 2018

1. Reporter asks Rep. Nadler question UPSOUND: (English) When you become chairman (of House Judiciary Commitee) are you going to officially end this investigation?

2. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rep. Jerrold Nadler, (D) New York:

Yes. (Reporter: Why?) Because it's a waste of time to start with. The entire purpose of this investigation is to cast aspersions on the real investigation, which is Mueller, there is no evidence whatsoever of bias at the FBI or any of this other nonsense that they're talking about."

3. Rep. Jim Jordan walking

4. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rep. Jim Jordan, (R) Ohio:

"I mean I've got lots of questions but I guess one in particular is we learned from Bruce Ohr (U.S. Department of Justice official) that Christopher Steele (former British intelligence officer) had told him he was desperate to stop President Trump from being president. I want to know when James Comey knew that. And more importantly did he know that before they went to the FISA court with Mr. Steele's work product. I think that's an important question to go, a line of questioning go down."

5. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi walks toward reporters

6. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, (D) Illinois:

"Well we have the right witness for the wrong questions. I think the Republicans brought him here to talk about Hillary Clinton. That's a settled issue. Instead we should be talking more about the ongoing Russia investigation, Paul Manafort, Michael Cohen and Michael Flynn. I brought a copy of his (Comey's) book, I'm hoping to get a signed copy to auction off to pay for this wasteful investigation."

++SOTS SEPARATED BY BLACK FRAMES++

7. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, (D) Illinois:

"I'm hopeful that  you know Mr. Barr would be very responsible with the Mueller investigation. Certainly, Mr. Whitaker was not the right pick, even for an acting attorney general position. So let's see what Mr. Barr would say in his confirmation hearings. I think there are going to be a lot of pointed questions about how he's going to handle the Mueller investigation going forward. The bottom line is this. We have to allow our investigation to proceed unimpeded. Let the chips fall where they may. And in the meantime I'm hoping that we pass some protect Mueller legislation to make sure that his investigation is not terminated in an untimely way."

++SOTS SEPARATED BY BLACK FRAMES++

8.  SOUNDBITE: (English) Rep. Jerrold Nadler, (D) New York:

"I just heard about William Barr. I don't really know that much about him. I know he's attorney general years ago. But the real question now is that you know Barr will have to go before the Senate for confirmation. That will take some time. The real question now is that Whitaker is still the acting attorney general without having gone through the Senate. I believe that's unconstitutional and lots of questions about his bias and his having prejudged the outcome of the Mueller investigation have not been answered."

Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi says former FBI Director James Comey's "resolute testimony" confirms President Donald Trump's "contempt for justice."

Pelosi says that instead of protecting American democracy from Russian President Vladimir Putin, the president has worked relentlessly to obstruct the investigation of General Michael Flynn and the campaign's "possible collusion" with Russia.

Pelosi spoke after Comey appeared before a Senate panel Thursday.

Pelosi says an outside independent commission is needed to prevent foreign powers from interfering in future elections.

She says Russia hacked, leaked and in some cases altered information in a way that had an impact on the 2016 election. She says "we cannot let that happen again."

Washington - 8 June 2017

1. Wide of Pelosi walking to podium

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Nancy Pelosi, (D) Minority Leader:

"What we want are the facts. And why are the Republicans in Congress standing in the way of the American people finding out the truth of what the Russians have politically, personally or financially on President Donald Trump and when we see the facts then we can make a determination of how the facts compare through the wall or contrast. So you ask what did I learn today? Well I think we saw confirmation in Director Comey's resolute testimony detailing the frightening reality of President Trump's pattern of contempt for justice. His pattern of concerted and inexcusable efforts to shut down the FBI's investigation of his cronies ties to Russia and all of that I think disgraces the office of president. The president may not realize that but maybe I have more respect for the office of president than he does. Instead of protecting our democracy from Putin, President Trump worked relentlessly to obstruct the investigation of Michael Flynn and his campaign's possible collusion with Russia. Nothing less than the integrity and security of our democracy is at stake. So we have an investigation within the justice department. We all have a high degree of respect for Mr. Mueller but that is within the Justice Department reporting to Trump appointees. We have high regard for the fact that Congress can conduct an investigation in the intelligence committee in the House and in the Senate but that's inside the Congress, inside a Republican Congress. What we need is an outside, independent commission. The commission would be more about how do we stop the undermining of our own democracy by a foreign power which is an adversary. Russia is our adversary."

3. Pelosi and other representatives leaving

Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi says former FBI Director James Comey's "resolute testimony" confirms President Donald Trump's "contempt for justice."

Pelosi says that instead of protecting American democracy from Russian President Vladimir Putin, the president has worked relentlessly to obstruct the investigation of General Michael Flynn and the campaign's "possible collusion" with Russia.

Pelosi spoke after Comey appeared before a Senate panel Thursday.

Pelosi says an outside independent commission is needed to prevent foreign powers from interfering in future elections.

She says Russia hacked, leaked and in some cases altered information in a way that had an impact on the 2016 election. She says "we cannot let that happen again."

Washington - 8 June 2017

1. Wide of Pelosi walking to podium

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Nancy Pelosi, (D) Minority Leader:

"What we want are the facts. And why are the Republicans in Congress standing in the way of the American people finding out the truth of what the Russians have politically, personally or financially on President Donald Trump and when we see the facts then we can make a determination of how the facts compare through the wall or contrast. So you ask what did I learn today? Well I think we saw confirmation in Director Comey's resolute testimony detailing the frightening reality of President Trump's pattern of contempt for justice. His pattern of concerted and inexcusable efforts to shut down the FBI's investigation of his cronies' ties to Russia and all of that I think disgraces the office of president. The president may not realise that but maybe I have more respect for the office of president than he does. Instead of protecting our democracy from Putin, President Trump worked relentlessly to obstruct the investigation of Michael Flynn and his campaign's possible collusion with Russia. Nothing less than the integrity and security of our democracy is at stake. So we have an investigation within the justice department. We all have a high degree of respect for Mr. Mueller but that is within the Justice Department reporting to Trump appointees. We have high regard for the fact that Congress can conduct an investigation in the intelligence committee in the House and in the Senate but that's inside the Congress, inside a Republican Congress. What we need is an outside, independent commission. The commission would be more about how do we stop the undermining of our own democracy by a foreign power which is an adversary. Russia is our adversary."

3. Pelosi and other representatives leaving

Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi says former FBI Director James Comey's "resolute testimony" confirms President Donald Trump's "contempt for justice."

Pelosi says that instead of protecting American democracy from Russian President Vladimir Putin, the president has worked relentlessly to obstruct the investigation of General Michael Flynn and the campaign's "possible collusion" with Russia.

Pelosi spoke after Comey appeared before a Senate panel Thursday.

Pelosi says an outside independent commission is needed to prevent foreign powers from interfering in future elections.

She says Russia hacked, leaked and in some cases altered information in a way that had an impact on the 2016 election. She says "we cannot let that happen again."

Washington - 8 June 2017

1. Wide of Pelosi walking to podium

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Nancy Pelosi, (D) Minority Leader:

"What we want are the facts. And why are the Republicans in Congress standing in the way of the American people finding out the truth of what the Russians have politically, personally or financially on President Donald Trump and when we see the facts then we can make a determination of how the facts compare through the wall or contrast. So you ask what did I learn today? Well I think we saw confirmation in Director Comey's resolute testimony detailing the frightening reality of President Trump's pattern of contempt for justice. His pattern of concerted and inexcusable efforts to shut down the FBI's investigation of his cronies ties to Russia and all of that I think disgraces the office of president. The president may not realize that but maybe I have more respect for the office of president than he does. Instead of protecting our democracy from Putin, President Trump worked relentlessly to obstruct the investigation of Michael Flynn and his campaign's possible collusion with Russia. Nothing less than the integrity and security of our democracy is at stake. So we have an investigation within the justice department. We all have a high degree of respect for Mr. Mueller but that is within the Justice Department reporting to Trump appointees. We have high regard for the fact that Congress can conduct an investigation in the intelligence committee in the House and in the Senate but that's inside the Congress, inside a Republican Congress. What we need is an outside, independent commission. The commission would be more about how do we stop the undermining of our own democracy by a foreign power which is an adversary. Russia is our adversary."

3. Pelosi and other representatives leaving

California's top law enforcement official blasted his former congressional colleague, House Speaker Paul Ryan, on Friday for suggesting that a lack of political experience helps explain President Donald Trump's questionable interactions with James Comey when he was FBI director.

In an interview with The Associated Press, state Attorney General Xavier Becerra labeled Ryan an "accomplice" for defending what he termed Trump's incompetence or dereliction of his presidential duties. Becerra served in Congress prior to being appointed attorney general earlier this year.

"How dare you say it's a novice mistake?" Becerra said of comments by Ryan and others defending the president.

Becerra was referring to Trump's potentially illegal efforts to get Comey to drop the investigation into then-national security adviser Michael Flynn's interactions with Russian officials. Ryan said Thursday that Trump should be forgiven because he is "new at government" and "learning as he goes."

Becerra said ignorance of the law is not an acceptable excuse for Trump.

Ryan's spokeswoman, AshLee Strong, did not immediately respond to an email request seeking comment.

Becerra was appointed after former attorney general Kamala Harris, another vocal Trump critic, was elected to the U.S. Senate. He and other Democrats who control all major political offices in California have positioned the state as the front lines of resistance to many Trump administration policies.

Becerra said continued political theater in Washington won't stop California from enacting its own agenda on immigration, the environment and a host of other issues.

In a wide-ranging interview, Becerra also defended the death penalty, the state's cooperation with federal agents in fighting drugs and sex trafficking, and said he sees no sign yet of a federal crackdown on California's burgeoning recreational marijuana industry.

But he also promised to continue fighting Trump's agenda, bringing legal action and joining other states when necessary.

Becerra said he has tried to engage with the Trump administration without much success. His efforts to meet with Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly for more clarity on their plans to enforce federal immigration law have gone unmet despite multiple requests, Becerra said.

Meanwhile, California's Legislature is considering making California a "sanctuary state" by limiting how much state and local law enforcement officers may collaborate with the federal government's immigration enforcement efforts, as well as bills to make it harder for immigration authorities to raid businesses.

But even as state legislators work to resist federal enforcement, Becerra suggested there's room for collaboration between state officials and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, from sex trafficking to cracking down on illegal drug flow.

"I'm not trying to thwart ICE from doing its work, they're doing some really important stuff and we're doing some really important stuff with them," Becerra said. "And so it just helps to have some clarity and predictability."

On other topics, Becerra said:

— California could file climate-related lawsuits, but it will depend on what actions the Trump administration takes.

"We're going to continue to do what we've been doing," he said. "If someone wants to try to stop us, then they're probably going to run into me."

He pointed to his efforts to defend California's energy efficiency and emissions standards.

He said he has received no response from the Freedom of Information Act request he filed two months ago seeking documents he said could show conflicts of interest and ethics violations by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt.

Pruitt had sued his new agency multiple times while he was attorney general of Oklahoma.

— Becerra defended the death penalty as constitutional, but stressed that officials need to be "cautious." There are "too many cases" of people wrongfully sentenced to death row, he said.

— Becerra said he doesn't think the federal government will make a "comprehensive effort" to crack down on recreational marijuana industries in states like California that have legalized the drug.

"My sense is that they know that if they try to do something on a large scale then they're going to run into a real juggernaut against them," he said.

He added that he would defend California's marijuana industry if the federal government does try to crack down.

Sacramento - June 9, 2017

1. SOUNDBITE (English) Xavier Becerra, California Attorney General

"I would let prosecutors who dealt with this day in and day out pontificate on that. I will tell you to hear the director of the FBI with some pretty definitive clarity say that the president either lied or misrepresented what had gone on that takes you into an area that you rarely see, certainly from communications and activities involving the president. When you also find out that the actions by the president have consequences, not just for the investigation on the role that Russia played, but also in a potential cover-up -- you're in obstruction of justice territory. Can you prove all the elements of the obstruction of justice charge? We are only at the beginning of this investigation and already this much information has come out. Would anyone have said weeks into this investigation of Watergate that we would have discovered as much as we ultimately did? My sense was that this was a deep pool and Mueller hasn't even jumped into the water yet."

REPORTER: "What do you make of Speaker Ryan's response was essentially along the lines of 'well he's new at this.' The president's new at this he didn't really know what he was doing'? I wonder just what your take is ont he response."

"My immediate reaction was... hmm... is this the guy who's got his finger on the nuclear button as well and is that an excuse you said you would give to someone who runs for president who would have his hand on the nuclear button that he's still a new guy. Cut him some slack. I don't get it. I think it speaks volumes more about those who are defending Donald Trump more than Donald Trump. How dare you say that 'ah it's a novice mistake'? You are the president of the United States. This is not one of those those things where you can just say 'oops. I forgot to pay the bill, or sorry hundreds... thousands of kids aren't going to get their head start, oops I didn't realize that we're not supposed to interfere in some other country's affairs.' You go through the whole process of the campaign and you're ready to be president of the United States. For someone to try to defend the -- not incompetence -- than the dereliction of the president, in my book you're an accomplice."

REPORTER: "What would it take... you said a couple weeks ago at the convention that you were near impeachment territory. What do you think it would take for Speaker Ryan, your former Republican colleague in Congress to get there themselves?"

"Well, after yesterday's comments by Speaker Ryan, himself, I'm not sure if he's willing to excuse the potential for obstruction of justice, what else might they be willing to excuse? High crimes and misdemeanors can mean many things. I would belive that obstruction of justice would fit into that category. There are a lot of other things that would fit within that category as well. As Republicans demonstrated, they were willing to go that route in the late 1990's. If you did someone for not being totally candid about their definition of 'is' and what you did in terms of their personal life, then you should be willing to want to investigate what someone did with potential collusion with Russia and someone trying to potentially undermine our democratic elections."